Ecology Chapter 24:terrestrial Ecosystems

Front 1

What is biogeography?

Back 1

Biogeography is the study of the spatial or geographical distribution of organisms, both past and present.

works to describe and understand the processes responsible for patterns in the distribution of species and larger taxonomic groups

Front 2

What is historical biogeography? Ecological biogeography?

Back 2

historical biogeography - origin, dispersal, extinction of groups

ecological biogeography - distribution of contemporary organisms

Front 3

What ecosystem is characterized by a closed canopy of trees?

Back 3

forest

Front 4

What ecosystem is characterized by the co-dominance of grasses and trees (or shrubs)?

Back 4

woodland and savanna

Front 5

What ecosystem is characterized by its scarcity of plant cover?

Back 5

desert

Front 6

What does the classification of terrestrial biomes reflect?

Back 6

The classification of terrestrial biomes reflects the relative contribution of plant-life forms.

Front 7

How long do deciduous leaves live?

Back 7

Deciduous leaves live for only a single year or growing season.

Front 8

How long do evergreen leaves live?

Back 8

Evergreen leaves live beyond a year.

Front 9

Which biome is dominated by broadleaf evergreen plants/trees?

Back 9

tropical rain forest

Front 10

What equatorial zone are rain forests restricted to?

Back 10

between 10 degrees north and 10 degrees south

Front 11

In which biome does rainfall occur almost daily?

Back 11

tropical rain forest

Front 12

Which biome accounts for more than 50% of all biological diversity?

Back 12

tropical rain forests

Front 13

What biome is characterized by greater seasonality in precipitation, replacing broadleaf evergreen forests?

Back 13

dry tropical forests

Front 14

What biome describes a range of vegetation types in the drier tropics and subtropics?

Back 14

savanna

Front 15

What kind of diversity of animals do savannas offer?

Back 15

herbivores

Front 16

Where do grasslands occur?

Back 16

Grasslands occur in the midlatitudes in midcontinental regions where annual precipitation is reduced.

Front 17

Where do deserts occur?

Back 17

Deserts lie between 15 degrees and 30 degrees latitude in response to the effect of ITCZ.

Front 18

What is the distinctive characteristic of all deserts?

Back 18

lack of precipitation

Front 19

What biome is supported by a mediterranean climate?

Back 19

shrubland

Front 20

What ecosystem dominates the temperate zone?

Back 20

rainforests

Front 21

What kind of tree dominates forests?

Back 21

broadleef deciduous tree

Front 22

What biome is found primarily in a broad circumpolar belt across the Northern Hemisphere and on mountain ranges?

Back 22

conifer forests

Front 23

What is the largest expanse of conifer forest?

Back 23

taiga (boreal forest)

Front 24

What biome primarily occupies glaciated land and is a region of cold lakes, bogs, rivers, and alder thickets?

Back 24

taiga

Front 25

What biome is dominated by a cold continental climate with strong seasonal variations?

Back 25

taiga

Front 26

Name the term that describes the perennially frozen subsurface that develops where the ground temperatures remain below 0 degrees Celsius?

Back 26

permafrost

Front 27

What biome is a frozen plain that is located at the highest latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere?

Back 27

tundra

Front 28

Where does alpine tundra occur?

Back 28

in the higher mountains of the world